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Rear Delt Fly

Difficulty: ⭐ Beginnerpull

Home Setup

Perform bent-over rear delt flies using water bottles, canned goods, or filled bags as resistance while hinging at the hips over a chair or couch for support

water bottlescanned goodschair or couchresistance bands

💡 Pro tip: Focus on squeezing your shoulder blades together at the top of each rep to maximize rear delt activation even with lighter household weights

Gym Setup

Adjustable dumbbells and an incline bench set to 30-45 degrees for chest-supported rear delt flies, or use a cable machine with rope attachment

Safety: Keep a neutral spine throughout the movement and avoid using momentum or excessive weight that causes you to round your upper back

💪 Muscles Worked

Posterior DeltoidRhomboidsMiddle TrapeziusInfraspinatusTeres Minor

⭐ Why This Exercise?

The rear delt fly is essential for balanced shoulder development and improved posture, targeting the often-neglected posterior deltoids. This isolation exercise helps create the three-dimensional shoulder appearance prized in bodybuilding while strengthening the muscles that counteract forward shoulder posture from pressing movements.

Make It Easier

Regressions for building up strength

1. Seated Rear Delt Fly

dumbbells + bench

Provides more stability and support, making it easier to maintain proper form and focus on the target muscles

2. Band Rear Delt Fly

resistance band

Offers lighter, more controllable resistance with constant tension throughout the range of motion

3. Prone Incline Rear Delt Fly

dumbbells + incline bench

Chest support eliminates lower back involvement and allows complete focus on the posterior deltoids

Make It Harder

Progressions for advanced athletes

1. Single-Arm Cable Rear Delt Fly

cable machine

Unilateral work increases stability demands and allows focus on correcting muscle imbalances

2. Rear Delt Fly with Pause

dumbbells + bench

Adding a 2-3 second pause at peak contraction increases time under tension and mind-muscle connection

3. Reverse Pec Deck with Slow Eccentric

pec deck machine

Machine stability allows heavier loads with controlled 4-5 second negatives for enhanced hypertrophy

↕️ Similar Movements

Face Pull
Compound pulling movement that targets rear delts with additional external rotation component
Bent-Over Lateral Raise
Nearly identical movement pattern performed from a bent-over position without chest support
Reverse Pec Deck
Machine variation that provides the same horizontal abduction movement with fixed path
Wide-Grip Seated Row
Compound row variation that emphasizes rear delts when pulled to upper chest with elbows flared
Cable Cross-Over Reverse Fly
Standing cable variation allowing constant tension throughout the movement with adjustable angles

Form Checklist

✓Lead with your elbows, not your hands, keeping a slight bend in the elbows throughout
✓Squeeze your shoulder blades together at the top while maintaining tension in the rear delts
✓Keep your chest up and core braced to maintain a neutral spine position
✓Control the descent and avoid letting the weights drop or swing
✓Think about pulling your elbows back and apart rather than lifting the weights up

Common Mistakes

  • •Using too much weight and recruiting the traps and upper back instead of isolating the rear delts
  • •Straightening the arms completely, which shifts tension to the triceps and reduces rear delt activation
  • •Rounding the upper back or losing spinal position, which can lead to lower back strain
  • •Using momentum or swinging the weights rather than controlled, deliberate movements
  • •Not achieving full range of motion by stopping short of peak contraction or starting position

📈 When to Progress

Progress when you can complete 3-4 sets of 12-15 reps with perfect form, strong mind-muscle connection in the rear delts, and a controlled 2-second squeeze at peak contraction without compensating with other muscle groups